JP2015072027A - Flexible hose - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance weatherability of a flexible hose 1 including a synthetic resin reinforcing body 4 by enhancing weatherability of the synthetic resin reinforcing body 4.SOLUTION: A flexible hose 1 includes a flexible hose wall (2) formed into an approximately cylindrical shape, and a synthetic resin reinforcing body 4 spirally connected and integrated along the outer periphery of the hose wall. At least an outer surface of the synthetic resin reinforcing body 4 is made of polyacrylate resin. The entirety of the synthetic resin reinforcing body 4 is preferably made of polyacrylate resin.

Description

The present invention relates to a flexible hose excellent in flexibility, and more particularly to a flexible hose having a spiral reinforcement body made of a synthetic resin integrated on the outer periphery of a flexible hose wall.

A flexible hose including a spiral reinforcing body integrated on the outer periphery of a flexible hose wall is used for various uses, for example, a ventilation duct hose, various transport hoses, and the like. Such a helical reinforcing body is often a synthetic resin reinforcing body in order to reduce weight and improve manufacturing efficiency.

For example, in Patent Document 1, a helical hose formed of a polyolefin-based resin (particularly polypropylene resin) having a flexible hose wall made of a resin composition comprising a hydrogenated styrene butadiene rubber and polypropylene, An invention of a flexible hose integrated with the outer peripheral surface of the hose wall to retain the shape of the hose has been disclosed. According to the invention, PVC can be removed while maintaining flexibility while being lightweight. It is disclosed.

JP 2000-337563 A

A hose in which a synthetic resin reinforcing body as disclosed in Patent Document 1 is integrated can be a lightweight hose, and is advantageous in terms of manufacturing advantages.

However, it has been found that if the helical reinforcing body for holding the shape of the hose is composed mainly of synthetic resin, the weather resistance can be impaired. Especially for hoses that are exposed to direct sunlight outdoors and hoses that are placed near light sources that emit ultraviolet rays even indoors, such as fluorescent lamps and germicidal lamps, the hose reinforcements can be used over a long period of time. As a result, the function of the reinforcing body may be impaired. Therefore, in a hose having a synthetic resin reinforcing body, it may be necessary to limit its application and the like while considering weather resistance.

An object of the present invention is to increase the weather resistance of a synthetic resin reinforcing body and improve the weather resistance of the resulting hose in a flexible hose including a synthetic resin reinforcing body.

As a result of intensive studies, the inventor has found that when at least the outer surface of the synthetic resin reinforcing body is made of polyarylate resin, the weather resistance of the reinforcing body is improved, and the present invention has been completed.

The present invention is a flexible hose having a flexible hose wall formed in a substantially cylindrical shape and a synthetic resin reinforcing body joined and integrated on the outer periphery of the hose wall, The reinforcing body is a flexible hose in which at least the outer surface of the reinforcing body is made of polyarylate resin (first invention).

In this invention, it is preferable that the whole synthetic resin reinforcement body is comprised with the polyarylate resin (2nd invention). In the present invention, the synthetic resin reinforcing body is preferably a laminated structure reinforcing body having an outer layer made of a polyarylate resin and an inner layer made of another resin (third). invention). Moreover, in 2nd invention, it is preferable that a hose wall is comprised by the laminated sheet material which has the layer which consists of a polyethylene terephthalate resin located in the outermost periphery, and the layer which consists of metal foil located inside (4th). invention).

According to the synthetic resin hose of the present invention (first invention), it is possible to improve the weather resistance, particularly the ultraviolet resistance characteristics of the synthetic resin reinforcing body constituting the hose, and to improve the weather resistance of the hose obtained.

Further, when the entire synthetic resin reinforcing body is made of polyarylate resin as in the second aspect of the invention, the weather resistance is further improved and the hose is hardly crushed. Further, as in the third invention, when the synthetic resin reinforcing body is a reinforcing body having a laminated structure including an outer layer made of a polyarylate resin and an inner layer made of another resin, the conventional reinforcement While maintaining the characteristics of the body, the UV resistance of the reinforcing body can be improved. Further, as in the fourth invention, when the hose wall is composed of a laminated sheet material having a layer made of polyethylene terephthalate resin located on the outermost periphery and a layer made of metal foil located on the inner side, the reinforcement The weld between the body and the hose wall is improved, the light shielding property of the hose wall is improved, and the effect that the object inside the hose can be protected from external ultraviolet rays and the like can be obtained.

It is a partial cross section figure which shows the structure of the flexible hose of 1st Embodiment. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the detail of the junction part of the hose wall and reinforcement body of the flexible hose of 1st Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the manufacturing process of the flexible hose of 1st Embodiment. It is an expanded sectional view which shows the other example of the junction part of the hose wall and reinforcement body of a flexible hose. It is an expanded sectional view showing other examples of a joined part of a hose wall of a flexible hose and a reinforcement.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the individual embodiments shown below, and can be carried out by changing the form. FIG. 1 shows a partial cross-sectional view of the flexible hose 1 of the first embodiment. The upper side of the figure is a sectional view, and the lower side of the figure is an external view. In FIG. 2, the detail of the junction part of the hose wall and reinforcement body of the flexible hose 1 of 1st Embodiment is shown. The flexible hose 1 of this embodiment is a synthetic resin hose. In addition, the synthetic resin hose does not necessarily have to be a synthetic resin for all constituent materials, and metal materials and natural fiber materials according to the required functions, etc., as in the embodiments described below. A hose containing a material other than a synthetic resin material may be used.

The flexible hose 1 is configured by forming a substantially cylindrical flexible hose wall by winding a flexible sheet-like strip 2 in a spiral shape, and by means of a helical reinforcement body 4 made of synthetic resin, It has a structure in which adjacent side edges of the strip 2 are joined together. The spiral reinforcing body 4 functions as a reinforcing body for maintaining the cylindrical shape of the hose, and the spiral reinforcing body 4 extends between the side edges of the strip 2 wound spirally. By being arranged and joined, it is possible to play a role of ensuring the airtightness of this portion while preventing the hose wall from being separated. In the present embodiment, the spiral reinforcing body 4 is disposed so as to be located outside the hose wall, and is integrally joined to the outer peripheral surface of the wound strip 2. Another spiral reinforcing body may be joined and integrated with the inner peripheral surface of the wound strip 2 so as to be located inside the hose wall.

The strip 2 is made of a flexible sheet material containing a synthetic resin. In this embodiment, the strip 2 is a laminated composite having a laminated structure in which an intermediate layer 23 made of aluminum foil is sandwiched between an inner layer 21 made of a polyethylene terephthalate resin (PET resin) film and an outer layer 22. It is composed of materials. In addition, as will be described later, the strip 2 can be formed of a flexible sheet material having another configuration as long as it can form a cylindrical flexible hose wall.

The spiral reinforcement body 4 joined so as to straddle the side edge of the strip 2 is a reinforcement body made of synthetic resin. Note that that the reinforcing body is made of a synthetic resin means that the main body of the reinforcing body is made of a synthetic resin, and does not mean that the reinforcing body does not contain any material other than the synthetic resin. For example, a hard steel wire, a conductive wire, natural fiber, or the like can be added to the synthetic resin reinforcing body 4 as necessary.

In the present embodiment, the spiral reinforcing body 4 is joined to the surface of the side edge portion of the strip 2, that is, the outer peripheral surface of the strip 2 by welding. And the reinforcement body 4 is comprised by the polyarylate resin (henceforth "PAR resin") at least the part of the outer surface of a reinforcement body. In the present embodiment, the spiral reinforcing body 4 is entirely made of PAR resin.

Moreover, in the flexible hose 1 of this embodiment, the side edge part of the strip 2 and the spiral reinforcement 4 are formed by welding the polyarylate resin of the spiral reinforcement 4 and the polyethylene terephthalate resin of the outer layer 22 of the strip 2. Are integrated with each other.

Here, the polyarylate resin is a synthetic resin belonging to an amorphous thermoplastic resin based on polycondensation of a dihydric phenol and a dibasic acid such as phthalic acid / carboxylic acid. Is a thermoplastic synthetic resin called chemical name poly 4,4'-isopropylidenediphenylene terephthalate / isophthalate copolymer. The polyarylate resin is sold, for example, by Unitika Co., Ltd. under resin names such as “U polymer” and “U-100” (“U polymer” is a registered trademark of Unitika Co., Ltd.).

A method for manufacturing the flexible hose 1 will be described. The flexible hose 1 can be manufactured by a so-called spiral molding method. FIG. 3 schematically shows a process of forming the flexible hose 1 by a spiral molding method. Prior to forming the hose, first, a strip 2 (tape T in FIG. 3) to be a hose wall is prepared. The tape T may be wound around a reel, etc., and may be used after being unwound from the reel when forming a hose.

The hose forming material is sequentially supplied to the hose forming shaft SFT capable of spiral forming of the hose to form the hose. The hose forming shaft SFT is configured so as to be able to rotate and feed the supplied material while spirally winding the supplied material. By a resin extruder (not shown), the PAR resin, which is a constituent material of the spiral reinforcing body 4, is extruded into a string having a predetermined cross-sectional shape in a semi-molten state, thereby forming a semi-molten resin string S2. The semi-molten resin string S2 corresponds to the helical reinforcement 4 of the flexible hose.

The tape T and the semi-molten resin string S2 are supplied in this order to the hose forming shaft SFT, and the flexible hose 1 is formed by winding these materials in a spiral shape. The supply position of these materials is appropriately adjusted so that the spiral reinforcing body 4 is arranged so as to straddle both side edges of the strip 2.

When the semi-molten resin string S2 and the tape T come into contact with each other on the hose forming shaft, the PET resin of the tape T is heated by the amount of heat of the PAR resin of the semi-molten resin string S2, and the PAR resin and the PET resin are welded. Then, the structure of the hose 1 in which the semi-molten resin string S2 and the tape T are joined and integrated by welding, and both side edges of the spirally wound strip 2 are joined and integrated by the spiral reinforcing body 4. Realized. When the hose is cooled by supplying cooling water or cooling air from the cooling device C provided on the downstream side (right side in FIG. 3) of the forming shaft SFT with respect to the position where the hose structure is realized, the flexible hose 1 is completed. By performing these steps continuously, the flexible hose 1 having an indefinite length can be manufactured continuously.

The operation and effect of the flexible hose 1 will be described.
In the flexible hose 1, the reinforcing body made of synthetic resin that is spirally joined to the outer periphery of the hose wall is made of polyarylate resin at least on the outer surface of the reinforcing body. Properties, particularly UV resistance. This is because, when the polyarylate resin absorbs ultraviolet energy, a reaction called Fleece transition occurs in the resin surface layer part, and a benzophenone structure is formed in the resin surface layer part, thereby blocking light in the ultraviolet region of 400 nm or less. This is derived from the function of polyarylate resin.

Furthermore, when the entire spiral reinforcing body 4 is formed of PAR resin as in the above embodiment, an effect that the hose is not easily crushed can be obtained. This effect is derived from the good spring recovery of the PAR resin, and even when the hose is stepped on by mistake, the hose reinforcement 4 is prevented from being damaged or plastically deformed.

Further, when the strip 2 is constituted by a laminated sheet material including a layer made of a metal foil, the light shielding property of the hose wall is improved, which is convenient for protecting an object inside the hose from external ultraviolet rays or the like. .

Further, in the flexible hose 1, the polyarylate resin of the spiral reinforcing body 4 and the polyethylene terephthalate resin of the outer layer 22 of the strip 2 are well welded, and the quality such as strength and airtightness of the hose 1 is improved. Enhanced.
According to the study by the inventors, in the prior art, it was not always easy to weld the strip provided with the PET resin to the surface layer with the resin reinforcing body. That is, the strip including the PET resin has poor weldability, and even when the same kind of PET resin is used for the reinforcing body, the strip and the reinforcing body may not be welded well. In addition, we tried to improve weldability by mixing low-melting point PET resin into the reinforcement PET resin or using modified PET resin, but there was no significant improvement in weldability, and the strength of the reinforcement was It was easy to drop, or the reinforcement body was easy to peel off from the strip.

As in the case of the flexible hose 1, when polyarylate (PAR) resin is used for the reinforcing body, the reason why the weldability of the strip with the PET resin is good is not clear. However, since the melting point of PAR resin is higher than that of PET resin, the temperature when it is supplied to the hose forming shaft in a semi-molten string is high, and the amount of heat that the semi-molten resin string S2 has increases, so It is presumed that the fact that the temperature of the PET resin of the strip to be attached is easily increased is one of the reasons that the weldability is good.
From this point of view, if the entire reinforcing body 4 is made of polyarylate resin, the amount of heat of the semi-molten resin string S2 can be increased, and the weldability becomes better.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be implemented with various modifications. Other embodiments of the present invention will be described below. However, in the following description, portions different from the above embodiment will be mainly described, and detailed descriptions of the same portions will be omitted. In addition, the embodiments described below can be implemented by combining some of them or replacing some of them.

FIG. 4 shows an enlarged view of the structure of the hose wall and the reinforcing body of the flexible hose according to the second embodiment. In the present embodiment, the strip 5 serving as the hose wall is a flexible laminated sheet material having a two-layer structure in which an aluminum vapor deposition layer 51 on the hose outer peripheral surface side and a PET resin layer 52 on the hose inner peripheral surface side are laminated. It is comprised by. For example, a nonwoven fabric layer made of a nonwoven fabric of polyester fiber may be provided further inside the PET resin layer 52. When a layer made of a metal foil is provided on the constituent material of the hose wall, such as the aluminum vapor deposition layer 51 in the present embodiment or the aluminum foil layer 23 in the first embodiment, external light rays are reflected by the metal foil layer and blocked. Therefore, it can contribute to protecting the hose wall layer provided inside the metal foil layer and the object inside the hose from ultraviolet rays.

In the present embodiment, the spiral reinforcing body 6 is configured such that the outer surface portion of the reinforcing body 6 is an outer layer 62 formed of PAR resin, and the inner portion of the outer layer 62 is an inner layer 61 formed of PET resin. ing. That is, the reinforcing body 6 is a reinforcing body having a laminated structure, and the outer surface of the inner layer 61 of the reinforcing body on the outer side of the hose is covered with the outer layer 62. Further, the inner layer 61 and the outer layer 62 are welded and laminated together. Such a laminated structure reinforcing body can be manufactured by co-extrusion of the resin constituting the inner layer and the outer layer, or by integrating the inner layer on the outer periphery of the hose wall and then integrating the outer layer. . The inner layer 61 and the outer layer 62 may be laminated and integrated with an adhesive or the like.

Even if the reinforcing body 6 has such a laminated structure, the PAR resin exposed on the outer surface of the reinforcing body 6 is not resistant to ultraviolet rays of the reinforcing body, like the synthetic resin hose 1 of the first embodiment. The characteristics are improved and the weather resistance of the hose is increased. Thus, the specific structure of the reinforcing body is not particularly limited as long as the outer surface of the reinforcing body is made of polyarylate resin, and the configuration of other parts is changed as necessary. May be. If the reinforcing body has a laminated structure, it is possible to achieve other functions (for example, weight reduction) by an inner layer made of another material while ensuring weather resistance by the outer layer of the PAR resin, and effectively enhance the function of the reinforcing body. be able to.

In the present embodiment, the inner layer 61 is bonded to the outer surface of the strip 5. For joining the reinforcement body and the hose wall, various joining means can be adopted. In addition to welding, if the reinforcement body and the hose wall are integrated by using an adhesive or adhesive, or by mechanical joining such as caulking good. Moreover, it is preferable that the outer layer 62 and the strip 5 are also joined and integrated with each other by an adhesive or the like, but the joining and integration of the outer layer 62 and the strip 5 is not essential.

Moreover, the structure of the strip used as a hose wall is not specifically limited, For example, you may make it comprise with a single layer PET resin film. Depending on the function required of the hose, the hose wall may be constituted by cloth, paper, a thin metal plate, or the like. It is preferable to employ a material having good weather resistance for the hose wall.

FIG. 5 shows an enlarged view of the structure of the hose wall and the reinforcing body of the flexible hose according to the third embodiment. In the present embodiment, the hose wall 7 is formed of a film-like synthetic resin extruded in a cylindrical shape (for example, in this embodiment, an olefin-based thermoplastic elastomer mixed with an ultraviolet absorber). Thus, the specific means for constructing the hose wall is not particularly limited, and even if it is based on a spiral method in which the strips are spirally wound and integrated, it is extruded into a cylindrical shape. Alternatively, other means may be used.

Moreover, in this embodiment, the reinforcement body 8 is a reinforcement body of the laminated structure which combined polypropylene resin (PP resin) and polyarylate resin. That is, the side where the reinforcing body 8 is joined to the hose wall 7 is an inner layer 81 of polypropylene resin, and the outer peripheral side (outer surface portion) of the reinforcing body 8 is an outer layer 82 of polyarylate resin. Also in such an embodiment, the outer layer 82 of the reinforcing body 8 enhances the UV resistance of the reinforcing body and enhances the weather resistance of the hose.

In forming the reinforcing body 8 of the present embodiment, first, only the inner layer 81 of polypropylene resin is extruded and wound around the outer periphery of the hose wall to be integrated with the hose wall 7, and then polyarylate. The outer layer 82 of the resin is extruded, spirally wound so as to be laminated on the outer side of the inner layer 81 previously integrated with the hose, and the inner layer 81 and the outer layer 82 are laminated so as to be bonded and integrated with an adhesive or the like. It is preferable to make it. The inner layer and the outer layer of the reinforcing body are preferably joined and integrated with each other by welding or adhesion, but may be non-adhered as long as the outer layer does not separate from the inner layer.

Further, in the above embodiment, the description has been made centering on the embodiment in which the reinforcing body is formed in a spiral shape, but the reinforcing body has a plurality of ring-shaped reinforcing bodies arranged at predetermined intervals in the hose axial direction. It may be of a form. The cross-sectional shape of the reinforcing body is not particularly limited, and may be a kamaboko shape, a semicircular shape, a rectangular shape, a mountain shape, a shape having a rib, or the like.

(Example)
As Example 1, the flexible hose 1 of the first embodiment was manufactured.
As Example 2, a flexible hose was manufactured in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the reinforcing body of Example 1 was a reinforcing body in which the inner layer was PET resin and the outer layer was PAR resin.
As Example 3, a flexible hose was manufactured in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the reinforcing body of Example 1 was made of PP resin for the inner layer and PAR resin for the outer layer.
As a comparative example, the reinforcement body of Example 1 was made into the reinforcement body made from PP resin, and the flexible hose which is the same as that of Example 1 except that was manufactured.

(Wear resistance test)
The hose of Examples 1 to 3 and the comparative example were placed in an environment exposed to direct sunlight outdoors and subjected to a aging test.
One year after the start of the test, the test hose was collected and the state of the reinforcing body was examined. In Example 1, although the reinforcing body was slightly yellowed, the strength and rigidity were not inferior to those of the new one. It was. Also in Example 2 and Example 3, although fading of the PP resin and PET resin in the inner layer of the reinforcing body was slightly observed, the strength and rigidity were only slightly deteriorated as compared with the new hose. On the other hand, in the hose of the comparative example, the surface of the reinforcing body was white and raged, and when the force was applied, the reinforcing body was broken, and the function of the reinforcing body was considerably impaired.

The flexible hose of the present invention is excellent in weather resistance, and can be particularly preferably used as a blower duct hose, a ventilation duct or the like that is easily exposed to direct sunlight, such as outdoors. Moreover, the flexible hose of this invention can be used also for transfer uses, such as a liquid, a granular material, and powder. Furthermore, the flexible hose of the present invention can be used as a protective cover for a cable, piping, tube, or the like inserted through the hose.

The flexible hose of the present invention can be used for, for example, a blower duct hose and has high industrial utility value.

1 Flexible hose 2 Strip (hose wall)
21 Inner layer 22 Outer layer 23 Intermediate layer 4 Spiral reinforcement SFT Hose forming shaft T Tape S2 Semi-molten resin string C Cooling device 5 Strips 6 and 8 Spiral reinforcement 7 Hose wall

Claims (4)

A flexible hose having a flexible hose wall formed in a substantially cylindrical shape and a synthetic resin reinforcing body joined and integrated on the outer periphery of the hose wall,
The synthetic resin reinforcing body is a flexible hose in which at least the outer surface of the reinforcing body is made of polyarylate resin. The flexible hose according to claim 1, wherein the entire synthetic resin reinforcing body is made of polyarylate resin. The flexible hose according to claim 1, wherein the synthetic resin reinforcing body is a laminated reinforcing body having an outer layer made of polyarylate resin and an inner layer made of another resin. The flexible hose according to claim 2, wherein the hose wall is formed of a laminated sheet material having a layer made of polyethylene terephthalate resin located on the outermost periphery and a layer made of metal foil located on the inner side.

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